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Safe Driving Program For Oil & Gas Workers 6/5/12
Safe Driving Program For Oil & Gas Workers 6/5/12
Felicia Bolton
fbolton@cbs7.com
CBS 7 News Reporter
6/5/12
Midland, TX - The City of Midland declared today "Give Safety a Hand Day" in honor of the Give Safety A Hand campaign. The goal of this program is to make a difference in driving safety for local oil and gas workers in Midland and Odessa.
Recent studies show there could be even more dangers for the workers once they leave the rigs. Oil field worker Donny Susan knows first hand what it's like working in the oil field.
"There's probably about 280 miles that I'm doing right now. And I'm already traveled about 140,” stated oil field worker Donny Susan.
He said that many oil workers are susceptible to dangers on the road such as fatigue and distractions while driving.
"There's one thing that gets on my nerves the most. When you pass by these rigs and other people driving by [sic] and they're just setting they’re texting and driving,” stated Susan.
Texas Mutual Insurance Company and several other organizations are starting the new campaign, "Give Safety a Hand", to keep oil and gas workers safe on the streets.
" In the pass couple of years as the industry has boomed we've had more and more accidents that are involved more with getting to and from the job site rather than on the job site, " stated Texas Mutual senior manager Steve Bills.
According to the US Department of Labor 40% of oil and gas fatalities come from driving-related accidents. Many oil and gas company employers stated that they are doing their best to keep workers safe while driving.
" So I say don't use your cell phones, no texting, no Facebook, no twitter when you're working on the rig floor. That's just as important…the same things are true if you're driving a car or a large 18-wheeler truck, " said Robinson Drilling of Texas safety director Richard Tapio.
Participants hope what they learn in the new campaign will transfer onto the roads and lead to safer drivers.
The campaign will run through August. For more information on the “Give Safety a Hand" campaign go online to www.safehandtexas.org.